Surprise! Scholarship Fund Awards T.C. Williams Senior $40,000 Prize
Student receives Collis Warner Family Scholarship on Zoom call
Alexandria, VA – Earlier today T.C. Williams High School senior Foziya Mohammed had the surprise of her young life. On a Zoom call, the Scholarship Fund of Alexandria (SFA), along with Sen. Mark Warner (D-VA) and his family, awarded Mohammed a four-year, $40,000 scholarship.
The amount is the largest given this year and will be funded by the Collis Warner Foundation. Warner said that he and his wife, former Virginia First Lady Lisa Collis, started the Collis Warner Family Scholarship because of their belief in the power of education.
“We could not be happier than to have our first scholarship award go to Foziya Mohammed,” said Warner, “a young woman of obvious talent and grit.”
Overcome with emotion and grateful for the gift, Mohammed was also surprised by T.C. Principal Peter Balas and SFA Executive Director Beth Lovain.
Mohammed, who came to the United States from Ethiopia at 12 years old, planned to attend Northern Virginia Community College this fall. Now, with her scholarship, she can obtain a degree from a four-year in-state university.
“I was worried about how I would afford a four-year degree, and this scholarship will make that a certainty,” said Mohammed. “I can now afford college and then go on to work or attend graduate school.”
During high school, Mohammed earned a 3.68 GPA, ran track, held a part-time job while volunteering at INOVA Alexandria Hospital, and became a member of the Future Business Leaders of America.
